5 Things Required of You to Become a Social Seller

5 Things Required of You to Become a Social Seller

If you’re new to social media, it can be uncomfortable at first and really kind of weird to participate in conversations online, but you’re not alone. It will likely take some time to adjust to conducting yourself online, learning social etiquette and implementing strategies that will deliver your goals. So, if you want to embark on a social media plan or start social selling, here are some things you’ll want to keep in mind to become comfortable in order to be able to go the distance to be successful.

1. Have an Open Mind

If you’re going to embark on a path to be social online or expand your sales plan to include social networks, you need to be open to a new way of thinking. If you’ve never done it before, it can be difficult to accept that people really do produce results from networking online. It can also be extremely intimidating to have a public presence online when you never have had one before so you need to be open minded about being open and available to the world.

It can also be challenging to think of what to say on social networks and also that it’s in a different format, for example, 140 characters. Just as writing an email is going to sound different than having a conversation, writing a tweet is going to sound different than writing an email. You’re simply going to have to have an open mind to learn to communicate differently when you need to tweet or send a direct message on LinkedIn. Accept that the world has changed and be confident that you can adjust to a new communication environment and the content that is natural to that environment.

It can also take time to adjust to sharing all the hard earned knowledge you once considered proprietary. Having an open mind to adapt your sales process to the new online buyer is the first step to success as a Social Seller.

2. Set Goals

As in any endeavor, knowing your endgame is helpful. If you want to make a lasagne, you’re going to need to to know what type of lasagne you want to make. You might put a little extra meat or vegetables or cheese, but you know your goal is to make it and serve it, see if people like it and then listen to their feedback as well as be gracious when they enjoy it. Social media is the same. You have an idea of what you’re trying to achieve and all your actions should support that. When making the lasagne you’re not going to suddenly throw some bananas in it, so have a goal for your social media plan and stick to it.

3. Be Disciplined

Social media is unwieldy. If you’re a pitcher, you can’t just pitch 7 hours a day and expect to succeed. You have a specific series of exercises that help you improve the way you work and get the win. Be disciplined about executing your social selling plan.

4. Change your Mindset from “Doing Social” to “Being Social”

When you first begin to use social media and partake in social selling, you’ll likely need to automate your actions and test out a few work schedules and become comfortable with the software you’re using. You’ll need to get organized and coordinated with the technology and your goals and become accustomed to continually creating and posting content. A lot of people can get stuck in this automated repetition. But the reason we are in social is to be social.

So, make sure that once you’re in the groove, you learn to sit back, relax and get comfortable. If you’re not accustomed to tweeting, you may have a thought in reaction to someone’s tweet in your head, but not instinctively put it in writing and reply. It may take some time to become comfortable, but send that thought back in a tweet. If you have an interesting question, put it out there for your community. Asking is a great way to build a relationship with others. If you’re experiencing something work related like a conference or a webinar or you’ve just downloaded a new social app, let people know. I like to think of Twitter as a big party and you’re just talking.

5. Go the Distance

Have you ever noticed that the best part of the party is the time with the few people left at the end of the party? Yeah, you know what I’m talking about. That’s what being successful in social is like. By the end of the party, everyone’s relaxed, they’ve had a few conversations, a few drinks and it gets real intimate. The longer you participate in social media and the more authentic you are, the greater the success you will have.